Projet Montréal candidate leaves caucus after insulting Indigenous people

Verdun borough councillor Enrique Machado has left the Projet Montréal caucus and won't seek re-election after he made disparaging comments on social media about Indigenous people.

Less than a week ago, the party presented its "experienced" team for the election campaign in Verdun, which included the borough councillor.

Machado, who is originally from Venezuela, commented under Venezuelan influencer Sofia Saavedra's TikTok video, which celebrated the installation of a 3D ad screen in Caracas.

In Spanish, he wrote: "Seriously? Are you surprised by this? Hahaha. Venezuelans are like Indigenous people, give them mirrors and little shiny things and they'll be amazed."

After the influencer and other users denounced his comments, Machado changed the privacy settings for his profile. But screenshots of his comments had already been circulating.

Departure from Projet Montréal

Tuesday, Machado apologized in a Facebook post and announced his decision to withdraw his candidacy in the Nov. 2 municipal election.

"I did not mean to be offensive or contemptuous in any way. I apologize. These clumsy comments do not represent my thoughts or my values," he wrote.

A spokesperson for the Montreal mayor's cabinet said in an email that "Machado's comments are unacceptable and incompatible with the values upheld by our administration."

Projet Montréal spokesperson Arianne Beaupré said in an email that given the circumstances Machado made the right decision to leave caucus and not seek re-election.

Born in Venezuela, Machado arrived in Canada in the summer of 2010 when he was 28. He served only one term as a municipal councillor.

He will remain in office as an independent councillor until Nov. 2.